NEW FROM THE WARNER ARCHIVE COLLECTION
Green Lantern: The Animated Series (2011-13) – DC’s cosmic superhero was better served in this Cartoon Network series than in his big-screen Ryan Reynolds incarnation. Now on Blu-ray, this two-disc set includes all 26 episodes of the series.
Medical Center: The Complete Fourth Season (1972-73) – Chad Everett returns with 24 more episodes of the popular medical series. This time, he’s got such guest stars as John Ritter, Bill Bixby, Larry Hagman and Ruth Buzzi.
Tim Holt Western Classics Collection, Vol. 4 (1940-52) – Nine more Westerns from the RKO vaults starring cowboy favorite Tim Holt. This installment includes Wagon Train, The Fargo Kid, Cyclone On Horseback, Riding The Wind, Land Of The Open Range, Thundering Hoofs, Overland Telegraph and Trail Guide.
PARAMOUNT TITLES BACK IN PRINT VIA WARNER ARCHIVE
The Adventures Of Sebastian Cole (1998) – Adrian Grenier and Clark Gregg, both a long way from Entourage and S.H.I.E.L.D., star in this indie comedy-drama.
Angela’s Ashes (1999) – Alan Parker brings Frank McCourt’s beloved memoir to the screen. It’s a nice try but it can’t come close to capturing the magic of the book, although Emily Watson’s performance is terrific.
Bloody Sunday (2002) – Paul Greengrass directs this excellent dramatization of the notorious massacre of Irish civil rights protestors in 1972. Jeez, between this and Angela’s Ashes, Warner sure picked an uplifting way to say Happy St. Patrick’s Day.
Brain Donors (1992) – John Turturro, Mel Smith and Bob Nelson star in this ill-advised but almost successful attempt at creating a modern day Marx Brothers movie. It sounds like it should be a terrible idea but it works better than it has any right to.
Joseph Andrews (1977) – Tom Jones director Tony Richardson adapts another comic Henry Fielding novel, this time with Ann-Margret and Peter Firth in the leads.
King David (1985) – Richard Gere takes the title role in this biblical epic from director Bruce Beresford and a decade (the 1980s) not exactly known for its biblical epics.
Lady Jane (1986) – Helena Bonham Carter stars as the young woman placed reluctantly on the throne of England. This was her follow-up to A Room With A View and confirmed her as a major new talent.
The Lonely Man (1957) – Gunslinger Jack Palance tries to reconnect with his son, Anthony Perkins. I’m not familiar with this but whoever decided to cast Palance and Perkins as father and son deserves some kind of award.
Mean Machine (2001) – Adam Sandler wasn’t the first person to remake Robert Aldrich’s The Longest Yard. That honor goes to Vinnie Jones and Jason Statham. They switch one type of football for another in this UK version.
Permanent Record (1988) – A high school class is thrown into turmoil when one of their classmates commits suicide. This is one of the better teen dramas of the 80s with a surprisingly good performance by Keanu Reeves.
The Reckoning (2002) – Paul Bettany stars as a disgraced priest who hides out with a traveling band of performers led by Willem Dafoe in this medieval murder mystery. I wanted to like this one but it never quite took off for me. Your mileage may vary.
Testament (1983) – This is the real keeper from this week’s batch of Paramount titles, a quiet, understated story about a woman (Jane Alexander) trying to keep her family from falling apart in the aftermath of a nuclear war. This was overshadowed in ’83 by the much bigger and louder The Day After but this is the superior movie. Well worth checking out.
NEW FROM 20TH CENTURY FOX CINEMA ARCHIVES
Dante’s Inferno (1935) – Spencer Tracy stars as an unscrupulous carnival owner in this drama that doesn’t really have much to do with Dante apart from a brief but unforgettable sequence depicting Hell and the tortures of the damned.
Esther And The King (1960) – Joan Collins stars in this Bible story for director Raoul Walsh with cinematography by the great Mario Bava.
Sodom And Gomorrah (1962) – Robert Aldrich directs Stewart Granger in this biblical epic. Aldrich isn’t the first guy I’d peg to helm a biblical movie but if he was gonna do one, I’m not surprised it was this.
- Adam Jahnke